SET DESIGN AND PROJECTIONS
The Turtle - Support of the World
Set and Projection Closeups
At the heart of many founding myths that live on in a variety of
legends and oral traditions, the turtle represents the earth and
carries the entire weight of the world on its shell. This totemic
animal is also omnipresent in the scenic environment of TOTEM.
• The border of the stage recalls the plastron (underside) of a turtle.
The motifs on the surface of the stage itself are a collage of handdrawn images inspired by the patterns on the plastrons of several
turtle species.
The large oval framework on stage represents the skeletal
substructure of a huge turtle shell that serves both as a
decorative set element and as acrobatic equipment. At the start of
the show it is covered with a cloth printed with the shell markings
of a forest turtle, reproduced through macro photography.
Depending on the artistic needs, the skeleton is raised to the top
of the tent or opened at an angle like an enormous shell.
• Bordering the marsh upstage, the reeds conceal the artists and
some set elements before they enter, as well as serving as a
projection surface. To save weight and facilitate storage on tour, the
reeds are inflatable.
An organic world of multiple transformations
• Some of the projections on the marsh interact with the movements
of the artists in real time. Infrared cameras positioned above the
stage and around the marsh detect their movement and produce
kinetic effects such as ripples, splashes and reflections in the water
and the flames.
The visual environment of TOTEM is an organic world, a marsh lined
with reeds near an island (the stage), on which images are projected.
Set designer Carl Fillion gave it curves and non-linear forms to reflect
the natural world.
Tilted slightly forward, the image marsh acts both as a stage entrance
and as a projection surface. Through the magic of moving images it
becomes a virtual swamp, a river source, a marsh, a lake, an ocean, a
volcanic island, a pond and a starry sky.
The images in the projections are drawn from nature and were shot for
the production in various parts of the world, including Iceland, Hawaii
and Guatemala. Even the images of boiling lava were filmed by Image
Content Designer Pedro Pires.
The “Scorpion Bridge” serving as a mobile platform connects the
marsh to the scene features variable geometry, allowing it to adapt to
each tableau. In one of the clown numbers, for example, it becomes
the prow of a boat then rises to become a plane in flight, and finally a
rocket taking off. In another scene, the bridge is configured to look like a
vertical totem pole.
The concept of the Scorpion Bridge was loosely based on a retractable
pedestrian bridge in London. Built of steel and weighing 10,000 lbs, its
8 powerful mineral oil hydraulic motors allow it to rise, descend, extend,
retract and curl in on itself like a scorpion’s tail. Its reflective surfaces,
which shine like mirrors, are made of stainless steel plates. The base of
the bridge houses lighting equipment, a laser, speakers and cameras.
During the show, the bridge is monitored by an operator using four
infrared cameras.
• During the rings trio number, the Scorpion Bridge turns into an
Indian carpet that unrolls on the beach in a reference to the
Bollywood aesthetic that inspired the overall look of this scene.
• Photographs taken by Guy Laliberté during his 2009 Poetic Social
Mission aboard the International Space Station are integrated in the
show.
Acrobatic Equipment
• The turtle skeleton weighs 2,700 pounds (1,225 kg), includes
2 horizontal bars and is completely covered in a non-slip finish.
• The unicycles are 7 feet (2 m) tall but very light, which makes them
easier to manoeuvre down the ramp at the beginning of the act.
• The perch poles are made of duralumin, an alloy used in
aeronautics. The tallest pole is about 33 feet (10 m) high.